The Special Chambers Panel has upheld the KPC decision to expel former Durrës Appellate Judge Petraq Dhimitri from the justice system for 15 years.
This decision of the KPC and KPA came after the judge was sentenced for corruption to three years in prison, a sentence which was reduced by one third after the judge had accepted an abbreviated trial.
In November 2019, the Serious Crimes Court sentenced Judges Kliton Spahiu, Petraq Dhimitri and Petrit Çeno to two years in prison each.
The three judges were found to have benefited from frequent trips abroad from a businessman with the surname Sadiku. The trips were given in return for decisions in his favour.
The businessman was a party in a court case in the Durrës Court of Appeal, where Judge Spahiu was the rapporteur and members of the trial panel were Çeno and Dhimitri.
This decision was upheld by the Special Court of Appeal. The latter converted the sentence for the three judges of the Durrës Court of Appeal, from two years in prison to probation.
